lutein

[ loo-tee-in ]

/ ˈlu ti ɪn /

noun Biochemistry.

Also called xanthophyll. a yellow-red, water-insoluble, crystalline, carotenoid alcohol, C40H56O2, found in the petals of marigold and certain other flowers, egg yolk, algae, and corpora lutea: used chiefly in the biochemical study of the carotenoids.

a preparation consisting of dried and powdered corpora lutea from hogs.

Nearby words

luteal, luteal cell, luteal phase, lutecium, lutefisk, lutein, lutein cell, luteinization, luteinize, luteinizing hormone, luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone

Origin of lutein

1865–70; < Latin lūte(um) yolk of an egg (noun use of neuter of lūteus yellow; see luteous) + -in²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for lutein

lutein

/ (ˈluːtɪɪn) /

noun

a xanthophyll pigment, occurring in plants, that has a light-absorbing function in photosynthesis

Word Origin for lutein

C20: from Latin lūteus yellow + -in

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for lutein

lutein

[ lōō′tē-ĭn, -tēn′ ]

n.

A yellow carotenoid pigment found widely in nature; xanthophyll.

A dried preparation of corpus luteum.